Pune’s real estate market is balancing both worlds

PUNE: Witnessing a surge in residential and commercial spaces, Pune real estate market has been expanding its horizons.

The city dons a smart look, thanks to its metamorphosis over the past decade. Boasting state-of-the-art projects, this cultural capital of the country has a lot to offer to prospective property buyers.

Check out Properties in Pune

A steady progress on various fronts has taken the city on the national scene. Attracting an influx of cosmopolitan cultures across the country and from abroad, Pune is marching with a vibrant growth.

Check out property rates in Pune

Availability of land, cool climate and cozy lifestyle have made this town a happening real estate hub. Growing job opportunities in IT, education, manufacturing, automobile and healthcare sectors have propelled the growth. Its proximity to Mumbai did work to its advantage. However, the city has now established its own identity emerging as a promising property and lifestyle destination.

Pune has a large number of homebuyers in the young age brackets. Enhanced paying capacity has fuelled the demand for smart spaces leading to emergence of lifestyle luxurious homes. At the same time, affordable homes have been the priority for a major section of realty buyers.

This city has always been a buyers’ market and this fact has been influencing the types of residential projects floated here. What sets Pune apart is a plethora of options in terms of projects and locations. It fits the bill for every home-seeker with an array of living spaces from affordable to ultra-luxury homes. With realty development moving to the city outskirts, location choices are aplenty for homebuyers. Consequently, the city has multiple offerings suiting to different budgets.

It is a market that has evolved with customer needs, feels Parag Borawake, general manager, sales and marketing, Darode Jog Properties. “The city has something for everyone. One can get home here from average Rs 3,000 per sq ft to even Rs 18,000 and Rs 20,000 per sq ft. All that people need to know well is their requirement. Outskirts like Ambegaon Narhe, Dighi and Chakan have homes at affordable rates. The extensions of Nagar Road and Solapur Road on Pune East and MumbaiPune highway on the West are flooded with residential and commercial spaces and a lot more is expected to come up. Many areas in Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) are still within people’s reach. As customer class evolved, the demand for lifestyle, luxury and ultra luxury home started gaining ground. The buyer class varies from mid-income group to higher and affluent income group,“ he says.

Pune has been realistic and rational so far, Borawake opines. “A real estate research s ay s that Pune has witnessed a boom whereas Mumbai has seen a negative trend. Price in Pune has not been inflated but has been driven by requirement, cost of land, construction material cost and of course, the current economy,“ adds Borawake.

Pune is a rational real estate market, avers Arvind Jain, managing director, Pride Group. “There has never been a hiked realty market here. It is very realistic. Pune has been performing differently from Mumbai. The ratio of supply and absorption is much better here because prices are still within the budgets of mid-income buyers. The city has been steadily adding new areas to its real estate development landscape, and the supply coming up in these areas helps to keep prices in other areas at affordable levels,“ Jain adds. Some pockets are exclusively meant for a specific customer class, Jain opines. “Meanwhile, prices in certain IT-centric areas such as Kalyaninagar and Hinjewadi as well as elite neighbourhoods such as Koregaon Park, Salisbury Park and BT Kawade Road have risen much faster. Though this has placed these and similar areas beyond the reach of middle class buyers, they continue to be patronised by HNI investors and the upper management cadre of the IT sector.“

Several researches have shown that Pune is one the best performing realty markets, says Kishor Pate, chief managing director, Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd. “Pune’s developers continue to launch fresh residential projects in all budget categories affordable housing, mid-income housing and even in the super-luxury category. Pune is a property investment market that provides options to a wide spectrum of investment budgets, as the city has a steady supply of options in all price brackets. Even in high ticket luxury housing, the investment potential in Pune is high and rising,“ Pate says.

Pune is a unique realty market on many parameters, says Santaji Patil of Austin Realtors. “Buyers have many options to choose from as per their requirements. People can select a project depending on their budget. No other city is able to offer such multiple options the way Pune does. Some locations are developed owing to buyers’ needs. For example, saturation in Hinjewadi led to the development of many areas on the Eastern Pune as IT hubs. Hence, Kharadi was t exclusively developed as IT hub and luxury home destination. However, for middle-income group, Wagholi developed as a realty investment destination as many developers turned here for affordable l projects. There have been many innovations like studio apartments, luxury apartments at affordable prices besides standard 1BHK and 2 BHK flats,“ he says.

Echoing his feelings, Anil Pharande, chairman, Pharande Spaces, asserts that customer needs reign supreme in Pune’s property market. “Both Pune and PCMC cater to the requirements of budget home seekers as well as high-end property investors, and the demand does not come only from within the city but also from cities like Mumbai, Nasik and Bangalore. The property prices for both mid-income and luxury offerings are relatively low when compared to Mumbai, and the quality of offerings is also considerably higher. In the PCMC area, many locales have become hotbeds for mid-income and affordable luxury housing hunters,“ he says.

The city has balanced the demand supply ratio, opines Patil. “There has always been a high demand for housing as well as commercial projects and local market has always tried its best to cater to it. Along with the central areas of Pune, city outskirts are growing as property hotspots with sound infrastructural development. Luxury segment, too, is doing well. Yet, like any other city, maximum buyers are always looking for affordable homes and the city offers them in abundance. Those who cannot afford it in central Pune and even on outskirts can go to Chankan, Shikrapur, Shirwal or Talegoan and beyond,“ Patil concludes.

Latest Realty News

MUMBAI: Real estate investment trusts (Reits), which are expected to get a green signal in the upcoming Budget, could open up a new source of funding for developers battling declining sales and high cost of funds.

MUMBAI: Shares of real estate companies are on a roll with most of the frontline stocks trading higher by up to 17% on the bourses after President Pranab Mukherjee in his joint address to the Parliament today said that the government proposes proper housing to all citizens by 2022.

MUMBAI: Since May 16, the Bombay Stock Exchange's realty index has risen 32.50 per cent. The surge in real estate stocks suggest that the property market is booming again. But analysts believe that the fortunes of the sector will not change so soon. Does it mean then that before the price rise starts, buyers should jump to buy property?

THANE: The Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) has restarted its earlier scheme of giving concessions to residents who pay property taxes in advance. Under the scheme, residents who paid the entire year's property tax in May were given a concession of 5%. Similarly, the TMC will give 4% concession to those who pay the entire year's tax by June, 3% by July and 2% in August.

MUMBAI: Several sovereign wealth funds (SWF) and overseas pension funds are rushing to invest in India, driven by hopes of economic recovery under a new stable government. At least three sovereign funds from West Asia have invested over $5 billion in the past eight months and one global pension fund has committed to invest $450 million.

MUMBAI: Infrastructure is one of the deciding elements for finalising a property. A location that has good infrastructure development, commands high property rates and has good growth prospects and vice-versa. Shailesh Puranik, managing director, Puranik Builders, explains that “Buyers generally look out for basic infrastructure such as good and widened roads, easy connectivity to railway stations, airports, arterial roads, adequate supply of water and electricity, enough open spaces, and others

PUNE: The definition of an affordable property varies across the country and changes from city to city. An affodable housing segment of Mumbai may possibly fit into the premium segment of Tier II cities. Pune’s realty market is very dynamic and it offers space for all the segments, but the locality is different for each property class.

MUMBAI: The uncertainty in the real estate market has existed for some time now. With the market having been in a wait and watch mode and the growth figures of the Indian economy not looking so bright currently, the developers in Mumbai have found it tricky to offload their inventory. New property launches have definitely reduced in the market. This situation has led to a price reduction and handsome discounts or attractive freebies have been around for some time.